Carroll teammates revel in Courtney Hawkins' selection in first round of MLB draft

Jeff Zelevansky/MLB.com
Courtney Hawkins shows off his Chicago White Sox jersey at the MLB Networks studio in Secaucus, N.J. The White Sox selected Hawkins 13th in the first round.

CORPUS CHRISTI - It didn't have quite the anxiety as watching him nail down a state championship for Carroll two years ago, but Monday night's Major League Baseball draft brought plenty of tension the longer it lasted without Courtney Hawkins' name being called.

It turned out he didn't have to wait long after all.

The Chicago White Sox selected Hawkins with the 13th pick, making Carroll's senior outfielder the first Coastal Bend high school player selected in the first round of the draft. Hawkins is the seventh player from the Corpus Christi area taken in the first round.

Hawkins has signed with the University of Texas, so he could opt to go to college instead of play pro ball right away, but that is a remote possibility. With the MLB's new salary slotting system, Hawkins likely will get a signing bonus of about $2.475 million if he signs with the White Sox.

Carroll coaches, players and fans gathered at Beamer's Sports Grill to watch the MLB Network's draft telecast, and their 92-minute wait paid off with Hawkins — who was in Secaucus, N.J., for the draft — being picked by Chicago.

"It was tense, man. We're so excited for him — he's such a great ballplayer," Carroll sophomore catcher Michael Cantu said. "That's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. It's awesome. We look forward to seeing him play in the big leagues for a long time."

It came after some anxious moments and sighs from those on hand, as Hawkins had been pegged to go to the Miami Marlins at No. 9 or Colorado Rockies at 10, but didn't go until three picks later.

His selection was greeted with a loud ovation and followed by an impromptu "Carroll Tigers" chant. Hawkins then drew another loud cheer when he paused an interview to do a back flip, his customary celebration after victories this season.

"It's kind of hard sitting here watching it on TV," Tigers head coach Lee Yeager said. "It's pretty nerve-racking. You obviously want what's best for Courtney, so every time one of the slots came open, you hoped he'd be in it.

"We're excited that he went to the White Sox. He deserves it and he worked hard. We're excited for him."

Monday marked the start of a memorable week for Carroll. The second-ranked Tigers will play in their third consecutive Class 5A state tournament, with a semifinal against No. 9 A&M Consolidated at 3 p.m. Friday at Dell Diamond in Round Rock.

"(Hawkins being drafted) surely does give us some extra motivation," Cantu said. "It's awesome that he's a first-round draft pick and we're going there with a little chip on our shoulder from (losing) last year. It's definitely exciting."